xiii, 231 pages ; 21 cm

"John Frank Hickey strangled his first victim five years before Jack the Ripper began his killing rampage in London. And yet, perhaps because of the horrifying nature of his crimes, he has remained a stranger to history. Now, for the first time ever, his story is revealed in detal: that of a solitary milquetoast of a man who wandered the American East Coast for decades, harboring a terrifying assortment of personal demons. Many of the patterns of behavior that have come to be recognized trademarks of the sociopathic killer are revealed in Hickey's long and demented life of crime, documented in taunting postcards he sent to the police and media. From his first murder at eighteen until his capture and conviction nearly three decades later, he traveled around Massachusetts, New Jersey, and New York, working at anonymous clerical or engineering jobs while committing murders of breathtaking brazenness in his free time. Sometimes Hickey even attacked in public. And yet the sheer audacity of his crimes, coupled with his harmless appearance, kept him invisible to the world for many years."--Cover

Includes bibliographical references

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